RANKIN INLET - Every good fisherman claims to have a secret or two behind his ability to land the big one and Paul Pissuk of Rankin Inlet is no exception.

Pissuk has been on a roll the past three years while competing in the annual Rankin Inlet Fishing Derby.

Paul Pissuk displays the monster trout that won him top spot in the annual Rankin Inlet Fishing Derby - Darrell Greer/NNSL photo

During that time, he's registered two first-place finishes and one third-place finish.

Remarkably, Pissuk said he wasn't always that great a fisherman.

He said he has a few secrets behind his new-found success and he's willing to share one - kind of.

"A few years back, I started buying an item from Robert Janes," said Pissuk.

"I get something from him to put on my hook and it really works.

"I put down two lines in holes I make about four feet apart and fish will hit my special hook, but leave the other one alone.

"What I use kind of has the same smell as someone cooking fish and I only use it during one time of the year."

Pissuk said his father passed along a few fishing secrets to him, and he enjoys sharing that knowledge with the younger members of his family.

He said it's also important to know where the good fishing areas are if you want to land the big ones.

"The lake where I go for the fishing derby is a long ride by machine from Rankin.

"It takes me about 12 hours if I'm trying to hurry and about 14 if I'm taking my time.

"It's not a secret to people who know where it is. There are other people near me out there during the fishing derby."

Pissuk said he's a hunter at heart and enjoys fishing whether there's prizes on the line or not.

And whether it's for big money or a family outing, what's a fishing trip without a tale about the one that got away?

"The biggest fish I caught this year got away while I was hauling it up because my line was too week.

"I won with a nice female trout, but that was a really big male fish that got away.

"It was a lot bigger than the one that won me first place, so I was lucky my second-biggest fish was still big enough."